After reports of the parties emerged in December 2021, Johnson repeatedly assured lawmakers that he and his staff had always followed the rules - that turned out to be wrong. 9News
The Clerk to the Committee, left, administers the oath to former prime minister Boris Johnson ahead of his evidence to the Privileges Committee at the House of Commons, London, Wednesday, March 22, 2023.
In an interim report this month, the committee said evidence strongly suggested that it would have been "obvious" to Johnson that gatherings in his No. 10, Downing Street offices in 2020 and 2021 broke COVID-19 lockdown rules. He said he "honestly believed" the five events he attended, including a send-off for a staffer and his own surprise birthday party, were "lawful work gatherings" intended to boost morale among overworked staff members coping with a deadly pandemic.
Written evidence released by the committee on Wednesday showed that principal private secretary Martin Reynolds said that he had "questioned whether it was realistic to argue that all guidance had been followed at all times".
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